In additional to simple hygiene, there are numerous diseases, disorders and conditions that make it desirable to visually inspect the anal-genital area for detection, treatment and monitoring progress of treatment of the same.
For example, according to the Mayo Clinic fifty percent of the population experience hemorrhoids by age 50. External hemorrhoids are those that occur outside of the anal canal. They are sometimes painful, and can be accompanied by swelling and irritation. External hemorrhoids are prone to thrombosis: if the vein ruptures and a blood clot develops, the hemorrhoid becomes a thrombosed hemorrhoid. Internal hemorrhoids occur inside the rectum. As the area lacks pain receptors, internal hemorrhoids are usually not painful and most people are not aware that they have them. Internal hemorrhoids, however, may bleed when irritated. Untreated internal hemorrhoids can lead to two severe forms of hemorrhoids: prolapsed and strangulated hemorrhoids. Prolapsed hemorrhoids are internal hemorrhoids that are so distended that they are pushed outside the anus. If the anal sphincter muscle goes into spasm and traps a prolapsed hemorrhoid outside the anal opening, the blood supply is cut off and the hemorrhoid becomes a strangulated hemorrhoid.
The treatment of hemorrhoids depends upon the severity of the hemorrhoids and, therefore, the medical community has developed grading systems. One such system grades the severity of internal hemorrhoids based on the degree of prolapse of internal hemorrhoids as follows:
Grade I: The hemorrhoids do not prolapse.
Grade II: The hemorrhoids prolapse upon defecation but spontaneously reduce.
Grade III: The hemorrhoids prolapse upon defecation but must be manually reduced.
Grade IV: The hemorrhoids are prolapsed but cannot be manually reduced.
A less frequent but far more serious anal disorder is anal cancer. Cancers of the alimentary canal immediately above the anus are called rectal cancers. Cancers of the hair-bearing skin outside the anus are classified with skin cancers. The National Cancer Institute estimates 5,290 new cases of anal cancer in the United States in the year 2009 and at 40,870 of rectal cancer. According to the National Cancer Institute, risk factors for anal cancer include anal redness, anal swelling, anal soreness and anal fistulas (abnormal openings). Anal cancer may be accompanied by bleeding, pain, itching discharge or a lump.
Stages of anal cancer are:
Stage 0: Abnormal cells are found in the innermost lining of the anus.
Stage I: Cancer has formed and the tumor is two centimeters or smaller.
Stage II: The tumor is larger than two centimeters.
Stages IIIA and IIIB: The tumor may be of any size and has spread to lymph nodes near the rectum, groin or pelvis; and/or spread to nearby organs.
Stage IV: The tumor may be of any size and cancer has spread to lymph nodes or to nearby organs and to distant parts of the body.
When detected at stage 0, the treatment is surgical removal. Treatments for Stages I, II and III include surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Treatments for Stage IV anal cancer are mostly palliative. As with all cancers, success of anal cancer treatment is largely dependent upon early detection, and early detection is greatly enhanced by visual inspection of the anal-genital region.
Other diseases that affect the anal-genital region as listed by the Center for Disease Control include the Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Trichomoniasis, herpes, Syphilis, Human Papillomavirus, and Bacterial Vaginitis. Several of these diseases in early stages present as sores in the anal-genital region. In the case of syphilis, a single sore called a chancre appears during the Primary Stage, lasts three to six weeks and then heals without treatment. Treatment of syphilis with antibiotics is simple and effective in the Primary Stage. If not detected and treated in the Primary Stage or the Secondary Stage (skin rashes), syphilis enters the Latent (hidden) Stage of progressive damage to internal organs, including the brain. As with anal cancer, successful treatment of STDs depends to a large extent upon early detection, and early detection often depends upon visual inspection of the anal-genital region.
A need exists for people to be able to conveniently visually inspect their anal-genital regions. It is desirable to be able to conveniently view the anal-genital region in general and because some anal conditions including but not limited to internal hemorrhoids become more visible during defecation, it is also desirable to be able to view the anus during a bowel movement. In addition, it is desirable in some circumstances to take photographs of the anus during or immediately subsequent to defecation to provide to a medical provider to assist in disease or disorder diagnosis. The present invention provides a means of visual self-inspection of the anal-genital region and a means of visual inspection by third parties of the anal-genital region not provided by prior art.
There are other devices for self-inspection. U.S. Pat. No. 4,623,955, which issued Nov. 18, 1986 to Santini and U.S. Pat. No. 3,989,359, which issued Nov. 2, 1976 to Shutt, disclose toilet-mounted devices for self-examination of the anal-genital region. Both devices mount underneath the seat of the toilet using a brace, which supports a single mirror utilized to perform self-inspection of the anal-genital region. A user sits on the toilet seat and inspects herself/himself using the mirror supported by the brace. In the case of Santini the mirror is positioned directly beneath the anal-genital region, which precludes inspection of the anus during a bowel movement without soiling the device and precludes taking of photographs during the bowel movement. In the case of Shutt, the positioning of the mirror outside the toilet bowl cavity requires awkward body positions for inspection of the anus and precludes inspection of the anus during bowel movements.
Though the preceding discussion illustrates exemplary illustrations of purpose and use of this invention, they are certainly not all-inclusive, and the uses described, therefore, are not limiting. Accordingly, the invention can be used to inspect the anal-genital region for any reason or purpose including but not limited to disease symptom discovery, monitoring progress during disease or disorder treatment, visual guidance during application of medications and ointments, visual guidance during insertion of enema tips, visual guidance during removal of body hair and toilet training of children.